How the Internet transformed the software industry

Abstract

The growth of the Internet has had a huge impact on the software industry, from the ease of creating new businesses to the processes that companies use to develop, distribute, and support their products. Software architectures and platforms for web applications differ significantly from traditional desktop and client-server applications, and require a new generation of programming languages and development tools. Developers make extensive use of open source software, particularly at the infrastructure level of their applications. Development teams can easily use Internet-based tools for collaboration, thus facilitating distributed organizations. Product marketing now emphasizes attracting prospective customers to the company’s website. Companies can release products over the Internet, or provide a hosted web application, both of which are more efficient and less expensive ways to sell their products. Companies can also support their products over the Internet through online discussion forums, often with users helping one another. Ongoing advances in mobile and cloud computing, styles of user interaction, and software business models are certain to have a large effect, leading to innovative new products from both new and established companies.